Sunday, October 30, 2016

Everyone is welcome to
enjoy food, games and conversation. Food provided but feel free to bring booze, beverages or more food.

The house has dogs. Kids are welcome.

260 484-5946 or 260 750-9013

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At our October meeting we practiced our public speaking with a mock 3-camera TV talk show.

Robert Enders interviews Marty Bender, Brian Stoner, with Kristi Avery pretends to operate a camera and Mike Tront runs the switcher with help from Laika. Jeannette Jaquish set up the equipment and Tom Jaquish observes.

We plan to shoot more news-gathering and issues investigation and humorous videos in the future, for outreach and to undo the fear of public speaking to make us better candidates.

Monday, October 10, 2016

First of all, I hate writing about Trump. I think he is obnoxious just to get attention, and even the smallest amount of publicity would only serve to encourage him.

Donald Trump has said so many shocking things over the past month that at first I didn't think the 2005 Billy Bush Bus video was any more of a big deal than any of the other nonsense that he says. I finally got around to watching the video.

I have heard people say worse things than that, but none of those people ever plan on running for President. The people that I know who do want to serve in elected office some day try to manage their tone. This particular video was more than Trump saying the word "pussy". He was bragging about being able to grope women without any consequences. We can't prove that he was boasting about something he actually did. But for him to say things that imply he is a sexual predator who hides behind fame and wealth like Bill Cosby suggests that in 2005, a political career was the furthest thing from Trump's mind.

If I was advising Trump on his campaign, I would advised him to admit to the video early on back in 2015 and get it out of the way. Just say the whole thing was an incredibly bad joke and try to move on. If it cost him the primary, it would have saved him the trouble of a failed general election campaign. But voters have notoriously short memories, and this video could have been forgotten by now. I will never get involved in the campaign of a candidate who is as toxic as Trump.

Here is the thing that every political operative knows: if there is pictures, audio, or video of a presidential candidate, you have to assume that the opposition will find it. If they find it, they will leak it at a time that serves their purposes. I don't think it's a coincidence that the story about this 2005 video suddenly broke in early October. Just enough time to get the word out, and stay fresh in the minds of voters.

Trump knew this video was out there, and failed to mention it to his GOP handlers. If Karl Rove were advising Trump and Trump actually followed Rove's advice, this video might have washed right off. In the context of a competent, competitive, political campaign, Trump's actions up to this point make no sense. I have to wonder if Trump's real goal is to destroy the GOP or get Hillary elected. If that's the case, it says something that the GOP was tricked into letting him get this far down that path.

Thursday, October 06, 2016

We expect politicians to lie. They also
mix in just enough of the truth to make their lies more credible. But
sometimes a politician′s actual intent, beliefs, and motivations
are tough to pin down. Most politicians try to win over as many
voters as possible, while everything out of Trump′s mouth seems
calculated to excite a small number of people while upsetting
everyone else. Trump′s strategy is completely contrary to
everything we know about politics. Here are six theories on why he is
going down this route.

The Strawman. Maybe this is wishful
thinking on my part as a Gary Johnson supporter. But a lot of things
that Trump says seem geared towards making people upset with him and
distract from Hillary Clinton′s scandals. He’ll go through the
motions by giving speeches and raising money, just so that the plan
has plausible deniability. But if he starts leading in the polls,
expect him to do something extraordinarily stupid later this month.

The Attention Whore. Running for
President is a great way to sell books and get hits for your website.
Maybe this is all part of a lucrative marketing strategy. Or maybe
Trump loves being in front of the camera and the sound of his own
voice.

The Figurehead. Trump has zero
experience in government. Most aspiring future Presidents serve in
the military or run for state and local offices before taking a shot
at becoming the most powerful person in the world. Apparently, Trump
is going to let Pence and other members of his administration do all
the work and make all the decisions. The trouble with this is that I
don’t think Trump even makes a good figurehead. Good figureheads
manage their message better. Trump is like that friend of yours who
will talk trash to the other thugs in the bar. And yes, America can
kick the ass of every other guy in the bar, but when we go out to the
parking lot we found our tires have been slashed and several of our
allies have unfriended us. Trump has a 1st Amendment right to run his
mouth all the time, but I don′t want his words to represent the
country as a whole.

The Drunken Master. Trump may be trying
to get Hillary Clinton and other progressives to believe that he is
an idiot. He says all the wrong things on purpose so that he isn’t
taken seriously. Liberal voters are less likely to turn out if they
think victory is guaranteed. So look for Trump to start listening to
his advisors and managing his message in late September.

It′s all for the lulz. Basically this
is the plot of the movie ″Man of the People″. Wouldn′t it be
funny to run for President and say whatever pops into your head when
you are on camera and have half of the country eat it all up? I would
have liked to do that if I ever got to be old, obnoxious, and rich.
I′m just jealous that Trump got to do it first.

He′s telling like it is. Of all the
possibilities, this one is the scariest. I hope that Trump is smarter
than he lets on to be. I hope he is lying about wasting billions on
a wall that won′t stop illegal immigration, ending key trade deals
that keep the economy afloat, and using torture on people who have
not even been convicted of a crime. If this really who Trump is and
he really gets elected, we are in for a long four years.

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